SDSU, USD sports venues could start building next year

Plans for athletic facilities clearing hurdles for construction

Oct. 8, 2012

Jack Warner

Written by

Justin Sell

About the projects

What SDSU wantsState hopes to build a 190-000-square-foot indoor practice and human performance facility. The cost: As much as $38.3 million

What USD wantsThe U hopes to add a 6,000-seat basketball and volleyball arena, an outdoor track and soccer complex, and a Science, Health and Research Lab near the DakotaDome. The cost: $58.8 million

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The state’s two largest universities are expected this week to pass another checkpoint on the road to substantial sports-facility upgrades.

What’s more, South Dakota State and the University of South Dakota are on pace to reach the next stop, too, creating the possibility that major building projects will begin on the campuses in Brookings and Vermillion next year.

The agenda for the South Dakota Board of Regents meeting set for Wednesday in Vermillion shows that Executive Director Jack Warner will recommend approving facility program plans — outlines of how new buildings will be used, plus preliminary renderings and cost estimates — submitted by SDSU and USD.

SDSU is moving toward creating an indoor practice and human performance facility, a 190,000-square-foot space that will cost as much as $38.3 million in private funds.

USD hopes to add three new pieces adjacent to the DakotaDome: a 6,000-seat basketball and volleyball arena, an outdoor track and soccer complex, and a Science, Health and Research Lab. The indoor arena and outdoor venues are priced together at $48.2 million and the lab — which would serve academic and athletic purposes — would cost $10.6 million.

If the facility program plans are approved as expected, the next requirement in the process is for the schools to present facility design plans — detailed architectural renderings — and the necessary funding to the Regents at a Dec. 12 meeting in Spearfish. That’s the final step before being passed on to the South Dakota Legislature for ultimate approval during the 2013 session.

SDSU officials have been saying for more than a year that they hoped to be in this position at this time. USD officials hadn’t been as certain, but a recent run of donations has made it possible, they said.

“We see the projects going forward in parallel,” said Warner, noting that the improving economy has helped. “So we think that they ought to be brought along together.”

SDSU has raised about $25 million, according to athletic director Justin Sell, thanks in large part to $10 million from Sanford Health and $13 million from two unnamed entities. The school has put the low-end price for the project — to be built north of the Dykhouse Student-Athlete Center — at $27.7 million.

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SDSU Foundation CEO Steve Erpenbach said his organization will submit a letter of guarantee for up to 10 percent over the cash pledges on the idea that it will be able to raise that money in the time before the project actually begins, probably a span of five months.

“That’s pretty common,” Erpenbach said of the SDSU Foundation vouching for future donations on a building project. “You have confidence that you can close that gap.”

Meanwhile, USD’s financial plan for the arena and outdoor space goes like this: $14.5 million in cash donations, $3.4 million in athletic revenues and $20.7 million in debt financing. The debt financing will be repaid over 20 years through a combination of funds from Sanford Health, rental agreements and corporate sponsorships.

The last $9.9 million will be fronted by the USD Foundation as part of a major capital campaign that was announced this past weekend.

Warner said the Regents don’t have a policy on how much a foundation can extend itself on future funds.

“You have to get within some striking distance of the ultimate goal, and we think that both of these projects are getting there,” he said. “We evaluate these on individual cases, and it’s up to the institutions to put together a plan that looks like it’s viable.”

The Science, Health and Research Lab in Vermillion will be paid for through $8.7 million from the Higher Education Financing Fund and $1.9 in donations.

The projects were estimated in 2015 dollars, said David Sayler, USD’s athletic director, meaning they could cost less if done in 2013. The way he sees it, is USD is $12 million from hitting the total $58 million. If necessary, the Coyotes will move forward with the track/soccer pieces and the lab — that money is set — and address the arena next year. But he hopes that’s not the case.

“That’s our goal,” Sayler said of being ready for the December meeting. “We think it’s within our reach.”

The next piece for USD will be hiring a construction manager at-risk firm, ideally later this month.

SDSU has had that piece in place since April. Its current emphasis is bringing in as many dollars as possible. Sell, the athletic director, said the number of gifts have jumped from 39 to 117 since a $5 million match was announced last month, ranging from $50 to $60,000. He has group pitches planned for Sioux Falls, Minneapolis and Brookings.

“I think the push right now is trying to get as many of the preferred pieces into the plan so we’re not just going with the base,” Sell said. “But we’re going with enough money to start incorporating some of the preferred options especially with the human performance facility.”